Kentucky Falls at South Carolina
Seth McGowan rushed for 112 yards and a touchdown, but Kentucky lost at South Carolina 35-13 on Saturday night.
Cutter Boley, making his first start against a Southeastern Conference opponent, was 10 of 19 through the air for 124 yards. Kendrick Law caught five passes for 41 yards.
Daveren Rayner led the Cats with seven tackles, while Jordan Lovett had six.
Kentucky (2-2, 0-2 SEC) got the game’s first possession and on the second play from scrimmage, a Boley pass to Kendrick Law produced an 11-yard gain and a first down. Two plays later, McGowan went around left end for 17 yards and another first down. The Cats would get another first down and would get into the red zone. On the next play, McGowan rushed up the middle and shook loose for a 20-yard touchdown, his seventh of the season. Jacob Kauwe added the point after and Kentucky led 7-0 with 11:27 left in the first quarter.
South Carolina would respond with a scoring drive of its own. The Gamecocks went 75 yards in 12 plays and scored on a 12-yard Rahsul Faison touchdown rush. William Joyce added the PAT and the game was tied 7-7 with 5:48 remaining in the first quarter.
Kentucky’s next possession appeared to be going nowhere until Boley hit tight end Willie Rodriguez down the right sideline for a 54-yard gain, getting UK to the South Carolina 23. The Cats would get inside the 10 yard line, but the drive stalled and Kentucky settled for a 27-yard Kauwe field goal, taking a 10-7 lead with 58 seconds left in the quarter.
Early in the second quarter, the Gamecocks were forced to punt. A 16-yard punt gave the Cats good field position as they took over at their own 38.
The Cats crossed midfield but on a third down play, Boley was sacked by Dylan Stewart and the ball came loose. South Carolina’s Jatius Geer scooped it up and scampered 40 yards for a touchdown. Joyce added the PAT and South Carolina grabbed a 14-10 lead with 11:28 left in the half.
On the second play of UK’s next possession, Boley was intercepted by South Carolina’s Gerald Kilgore, who returned it 45 yards for a touchdown. Joyce made another point after and the Gamecocks led 21-10 with 10:43 remaining in the half.
Kentucky started its next drive on its own 46 yard line after a penalty on the kickoff return. UK crossed midfield again, but on fourth and three, Boley’s pass intended for Fred Farrier was out of bounds and the Cats turned it over on downs.
South Carolina would drive into UK territory on its next drive, but a big third-down sack by Mi’Quise Humphrey-Grace forced the Gamecocks into a punting situation. The punt was a good one and the Cats took over at their own five yard line with 4:55 remaining in the half.
The Cats would make one first down on the ensuing drive but on third and 13, Boley was intercepted by South Carolina’s Brandon Cisse and the Gamecocks took over at the UK 43 with 2:05 to play in the half.
South Carolina would cover the 43 yards in five plays, ending with a Faison six-yard touchdown run and a Joyce PAT that made it 28-10 Gamecocks with 1:07 left in the half. That would be the halftime score.
The Gamecocks got the first possession of the third quarter. They would get one first down but would punt the ball away and Kentucky took over at its own 20.
Kentucky would get three first downs on its next possession, eventually getting across midfield. However, the Cats would punt and the Gamecocks took over at their own 20 with 8:12 remaining in the third quarter.
The Gamecocks made one first down on their next drive but the UK defense appeared to stop South Carolina. On fourth and 12, the Gamecocks faked a punt and appeared to make a first down. However, after review, the call was overturned and the Cats took over at the South Carolina 39 yard line.
Kentucky was able to turn the good field position into points. After making one first down, the drive stalled, but Kauwe nailed a 42-yard field goal to cut the deficit to 28-13 with 34 seconds left in the third quarter.
In the fourth quarter, South Carolina went on an eight-play, 84-yard drive, ending with a one-yard touchdown run by Matt Fuller. Joyce added the PAT and the Gamecocks took a 35-13 lead with 12:14 to play.
Kentucky returns to action on Saturday, visiting Georgia in Athens. Kickoff is set for noon ET and the game can be seen on ABC.
